HYDERABAD: Senior politician Kuna Srisailam Goud joined the ruling Congress on Friday in the presence of Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy, ending his short stint in the BJP.
AICC Telangana in-charge Deepa Dasmunshi welcomed Srisailam Goud into the party fold by draping a party shawl over the former MLA. He was previously elected to the Legislative Assembly from the Congress party.
Srisailam Goud’s electoral clout was evident in the recent Assembly elections when he amassed over one lakh votes from the Quthbullapur assembly segment, effectively pushing the Congress to third position in the electoral fray. With the induction of Srisailam Goud in the Congress fold, the ruling party has further strengthened in Malkajgiri Lok Sabha segment as the Quthbullapur Assembly is part of the constituency.
According to sources, Srisailam Goud’s return to the Congress is due to the concerted efforts of party leaders who held discussions with him prior to his formal integration into the party fold. His induction comes at a time when the BRS and BJP are trying their best to wrest the Malkajgiri Lok Sabha seat from the Congress. It is pertinent to note that in the 2023 elections, the BRS won all the seven Assembly segments that form the Malkajgiri LS seat.
As part of its concerted efforts to broaden its electoral base, the Congress has also inducted N Sriganesh, a BJP leader from Secunderabad Cantonment segment, also part of the Malkajgiri LS seat. Sriganesh polled 42,000 votes to finish second ahead of the Congress candidate in 2023.
Meanwhile, Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy is personally monitoring the party’s election strategy in Malkajgiri, even as the ruling party focuses on inductions of several corporators and local body elected leaders. If things go as planned, a few more leaders from the Malkajgiri Assembly segment are likely to join the Congress soon.